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Jack Draper 'more mature' after Indian Wells triumph, says Alex Corretja, but ex-player rejects Rafael Nadal comparisons
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Updated 19/03/2025 at 08:23 GMT
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Jack Draper's triumph at Indian Wells, in a victory over Holger Rune on Sunday, marked out the 23-year-old Briton as a rapidly-improving player who could establish himself as one of the best stars on the ATP Tour. Speaking exclusively to TNT Sports, Alex Corretja praised Draper for an improved maturity and a refinement in his game, which has seen him add more to his powerful approach.
Jack Draper, Indian Wells 2025
Image credit: Getty Images
Two-time French Open finalist Alex Corretja believes Indian Wells victor Jack Draper is "way better than before" but rejected comparisons to Rafael Nadal.
Draper won the biggest tournament of his career, and his first ATP 1000 tournament, on Sunday, when he defeated Holger Rune in the final of Indian Wells.
Along the way, he also pulled off a massive win over former world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz, and the competition reinforced the fact that the 23-year-old is playing the most consistent tennis of his time on the circuit.
Speaking to TNT Sports, Corretja praised Draper for his efforts in California.
He said: "I mean, he's very impressive. He is such a talented guy, and he has improved his physical condition so much. Definitely, you can see that he can sweat, and he can struggle and survive.
"But also mentally, he knows what he wants. He's more mature, he's more focused on court. You can see that he's got the skills."
The Spaniard suggested that Draper’s improvements could be seen in how he handled the difficult conditions, adding: "And this is the main difference for me with Jack at this moment. Probably a few years ago, on one of those days when it is very windy, and he would have gone like, ‘Oh, I'm not feeling the ball very well. I don't like to play, blah, blah, blah’.
"And he would have lost. Now, no! Now, he sees that his game is at such a high level that he is confident to hang in there, even when he struggles, because he might end up winning. He also has such a weapon in his serve. It might be a nightmare to return that serve. So I think he understands the game very well."
There have been suggestions that Draper’s use of his left hand when playing, despite being right-handed in other aspects in his life, recalls Nadal, but Corretja sees little more than superficial similarities.
He exclaimed: "Zero comparison! I don't get the comparison between Rafa and Draper, honestly. They are totally different. The mindset and how he needs to play are so different. In a way, I have to say that, since Draper is more solid from the back of the court, it is definitely winning him more matches."
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Corretja added that while Draper has formidable power, he has since refined his game to be more effective over the course of a match.
He explained: "And this is something very interesting, in my opinion, that we have to maybe emphasise: nowadays, everybody feels like you need to hit the ball as hard as you can, you need to destroy every single ball and see if you are the most powerful guy on Earth. But you see, funnily enough, Draper is not winning more matches when he is hitting more winners... But, it's when he's more solid.
"You're not winning because you hit the ball as hard as you can; otherwise, we would have totally different players on top because we have some more powerful guys on tour, and they're not top 10 or top 15. Hitting the ball is very important, but knowing where to place the ball when and why is the key to success.
"And this is why I think Draper now is way better than before. He's more mature and also, physically, definitely, his body is hanging in there much better. But again, he's very young, so he needed time to learn, progress and adjust to all situations."
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